


Shared Memories

by Mechanical_Curse



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Angst, Boys Kissing, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Hurt/Comfort, I took some liberties with El's powers, Love Confessions, M/M, Mental Link, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Spoilers for Season 3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-14
Updated: 2019-07-14
Packaged: 2020-06-28 05:16:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19805515
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mechanical_Curse/pseuds/Mechanical_Curse
Summary: Mike was panicking. He was sitting in the woods, by the ruins of Castle Byers. Next to him, Will was laying on the floor, curled onto a tight ball. Tears were streaming down his face and his body was shaking.Mike felt horrible. He wasn’t stupid enough to believe that the return of the Mind Flayer alone had put his friend in this state.It was all his fault.Or Will has a breakdown when Mike and Lucas find him in the woods, and it takes more than a few apologies to fix everything.





	Shared Memories

Mike was panicking. He was sitting in the woods, by the ruins of Castle Byers. Lucas was there too, just as lost as his friend. In front of them, Will was laying on the floor, curled onto a tight ball. Tears were streaming down his face and his body was shaking. His clothes were soaked because of the rain. When they arrived, all he told them was “He’s back.” before having a breakdown and falling on the ground.

Mike felt horrible. He wasn’t stupid enough to believe that the return of the Mind Flayer alone had put his friend in this state. It was all his fault. For ignoring Will’s feelings, for hurting him in the worst of ways... His friend trusted him enough to confide in him, to admit his preference for boys, and Mike had used it against him, like a fucking idiot...

“Will, please calm down! I’m sorry, I was so stupid, I’m sorry. I’ll be here for you now, I promise, just talk to me. Please!”

This didn’t change anything. Will kept sobbing uncontrollably while Mike felt useless. He felt paralyzed, unable to think coherently as long as his best friend was suffering. However, Lucas reacted more logically. He reached into Will’s pocket until he found the keys of the Byers house.

“Stay here with him, I’ll go see if his Mom or Jonathan are home, or if I can call someone who will help.”

Mike nodded, his voice caught in his throat. After Lucas left, he gently moved Will so that his head would be resting on his lap and not on the ground. He swiped the dirt off of his friend’s face in a tender gesture, not knowing what else to do with himself.

“I’m so sorry, Will. All these awful things I said to you... I didn’t think any of it. I know I screwed up big time, but please just say something!”

Once more, it wasn’t enough to put Will out of his lethargy. A horrible thought crossed Mike’s mind. He said the Mind Flayer was back, but what if... What if he was back inside Will? What if that was the reason for his friend’s miserable state?

Cold sweat ran down his back and he decided that he couldn’t wait for Lucas to come back. With trembling hands, he opened his bag and pulled out his talkie walkie. He forced himself to take a deep breath so that he wouldn’t lose too much time finding the right frequency.

“El? It’s me, Mike. I know you’re still angry with me, and you’re certainly right to be, but I need you. It’s Will, there’s... There’s something wrong with him. I think it might be because of the Mind Flayer. Please, El...”

Mike stopped talking, fighting against his own tears. He suddenly felt so stupid. Will and El were angry with him, he didn’t even have an idea of were Dustin was... Maybe Will was right. Maybe he was the one ruining their party. And if El refused to answer him, his mistakes could ruin Will’s life, too.

“Where are you?”

He almost jumped in surprise when El answered him. He sighed in relief, before quickly answering:

“At Castle Byers. I... I’m with Will and Lucas is trying to find help.”

“I’m coming.” El simply answered, and that was all Mike needed to know. 

He closed his eyes for a second, then rubbed his friend’s back reassuringly.

“It’s gonna be okay, Will. We’re going to help you.”

Lucas came back a few minutes later, no Mrs Byers or Jonathan in sight. Mike hoped help was on its way, but his friend shook his head.

“There was no one home, and I couldn’t reach anyone. I think... I think we’re on our own here.”

Mike swore under his breath. Not only was Will still in the middle of an episode, he was also getting cold, even though the rain had finally stopped. He feared his friend would be getting sick if he stayed like that, but he also didn’t dare to move him to his house before he knew what was wrong exactly, afraid he would worsen his condition.

“I called El, she should be here soon. Maybe... Maybe with her powers, she can understand what is happening to Will.”

“But what if she can’t?”

That was the question Mike didn’t want to think about, the one that terrified him.

“For now, let’s just hope she can. While we’re waiting for her, could you go to the house and bring some blankets for Will? He’s freezing.”

“I just came back! You should have told me before I went there!”

“Just go, okay? Or do you want him to get worse?” Mike replied irascibly.

“Alright, alright, I’m going.” Lucas gave up while rolling his eyes.

The moment he was gone, Mike immediately regretted snapping at his friend. It was a time of crisis and they didn’t really know what they were doing, of course they were on edge. He whispered soothing words to Will, although he was pretty sure the panic in his voice didn’t help to make it convincing.

When Lucas reappeared with the blankets, they hurried to wrap Will’s in them. He was shivering but he didn’t offer any resistance when they moved him around. It looked like his eyes had run out of tears, too. They were still open though, and stricken with terror. Mike couldn’t imagine what was going on inside his mind.

He didn’t even realize that he had started holding Will’s hand in another desperate attempt to reassure him. Wanting to protect his friend, to make him feel safe, was natural for him. He hated how bad he had been at that lately.

He wasn’t sure how long it took El to arrive, only that it felt like an eternity to him. Max was following her, clearly upset to be here. Mike actually heard her before he saw them. The red-haired girl was still about him when they finally came into sight.

“I swear, if he lied just so you would come to listen to his lame excuses, I will...”

“I didn’t lie!” Not this time, he added to himself.

Max was about to reply, but then she saw Will laying on the floor and she went quiet. El dropped on her knees next to Mike, examining Will for a second, before staring at her now ex-boyfriend, a questioning look on her face.

“What happened to him?”

“I... I don’t really know. We had a fight and he went here alone. We ran after him, but when we arrived, Will had destroyed the fort. He only told us that the Mind Flayer was back and then he was like this. We tried to find help, but no one answered except for you. Do you think you can tell what’s wrong with him? With your powers?”

El hesitated for a second before answering. Behind her, Max was frowning, clearly not happy to see Mike bossing her around when it came to her powers. However, she stayed silent, understanding that in such a dire situation, causing more conflict wouldn’t help.

“I can try.” El finally accepted.

Mike swallowed back his enthusiasm, knowing that El needed silence so she could be concentrated. She put a hand on Will’s face and closed and eyes. It didn’t take long for her nose to start bleeding, as usual. She flinched and Mike couldn’t help but assume the worst.

“What is it? Is it the Mind Flayer?”

“No, not the Mind Flayer.”

Mike couldn’t express just how happy he was at the news. It had been so horrible, just to think that this horrible monster could be possessing his friend’s body again. However, he quickly sobered up. This didn’t mean Will would be alright. For all they knew, another creature from the Upside Down could be responsible for his state.

El stayed immobile for a few more minutes, then she opened her eyes, taking in a big breath. She looked shocked and Max immediately went to put a hand on her shoulders.

“Are you alright?”

“Did you see something? Do you know how to save Will?” Mike urged her.

“I’m fine.” El answered, wiping her nose. She stared down at Will clearly searching for the right words. “He has... Bad memories. Too many.”

“Oh, so now you’re telling us Will is in that condition just because he remembers a few bad things? Just say you have no idea what’s happening to him!” Lucas intervened.

She shook his head, staying calm despite the boy’s annoyed tone.

“The Upside Down... It made them more tangible, more... Real. He can’t handle it all alone anymore.”

“So what? You’re saying there’s nothing we can do to help him?”

This time, Max went to stand between Eleven and her boyfriend, upset by his behavior and ready to defend her friend. However, Mike interrupted it before they could get into another lover quarrel.

“Wait, you just said he can’t handle them alone. What if... What if someone helped him with it? Do you think that it could help? That it could be possible?”

To Mike’s relief, she nodded. So there was a chance to pull Will out of this misery. In this instant, that was the only thing that mattered to him.

“Do you think you could do it?”

“Wait a moment.” Max cut him. “Do you really think you can ask that of El? To endure those memories that are apparently so terrible just because you said so?”

“That’s not what I meant! All I want to know is if she can split those memories so Will can get better. I’ll be the one sharing them with him.”

He didn’t even think twice before announcing it. It all felt so natural to him. Will was his best friend and he would save him, no matter the price he had to pay for it.

“Are you sure... Are you sure you can do it? That it won’t simply make you crazy too?” Lucas asked in disbelief.

Mike smiled bitterly at the phrasing. It reminded him of something he never should have forgotten. He squeezed Will’s hand and whispered, too low for his friends to hear:

“Then we’d be crazy together.” Then he took a deep breath and added out loud: “Maybe, but I can’t let Will in this state. El, if there is just a chance you can make it happen...”

None of them missed the despair in his voice. Max even forgot to protest. For a second, he expected El to declare that this went beyond her powers. Instead, her eyes shone with a newfound determination.

“I’ll need something to cover my eyes.”

Mike rushed to rip his shirt, then he handed her the piece of fabric. She quickly tied it behind her head. By now, the gesture was more than familiar for her.

“Don’t move. And keep holding his hand.”

Mike obeyed her orders, a part of him a little embarrassed that she noticed it. For a moment, nothing happened and he assumed that El failed, that they would need to find another way to save Will.

Then it all crashed over him. At first it was only raw emotions. Fear. Pain. Rejection. Anger. Guilt. From there, it turned into sensations. Falling. Hurting. Coughing. Burning. It was followed by flashes of the beings who hurt Will the most. Lonnie. The Demorgogon. Demodogs. The Mind Flayer.

Only then did it all turn into complete memories. Mike wandered in the Upside Down. He put his hands on his ears so he wouldn’t hear Lonnie calling him a fag while Jonathan stood between them. He hid from the Demogorgon in Castle Byers. He ran away from the Mind Flayer. He fought to keep the control of his own mind, then to talk to his friends through morse code. He blamed himself for Bob’s death. He tried to conceal all his feelings inside, so he wouldn’t be a burden for anyone.

He felt terribly alone.

Then a memory erased all the others. It was clearer. More recent. Mike could feel the scent of the rain in the air. He recognized the front of his own house. However, he was more surprised when he realized that he was facing himself.

Except that this person didn’t look exactly like him. Somehow, that boy looked more perfect, more handsome than Mike had ever perceived himself in the mirror. And yet, he couldn’t spot a single physical difference between them, no matter how hard he tried.

That’s when he understood. He was seeing himself from Will’s perception.

“It’s not my fault you don’t like girls!”

He recognized those words, words he had regretted immediately after uttering them. New emotions emerged inside him. Shock. Betrayal. Sadness. But also some bitter irony he wasn’t expecting. Because how could Mike imagine that nothing of this was because of him? How could he expect him to be interested in girls when Mike was there with his kind eyes, his stupidly adorable freckles, his lips that he was desperately dying to kiss...

Then the recollection that this would never happen, that Mike obviously viewed him as a freak, hit him like a brick.

It took a moment for Mike to understand that these thoughts came from Will. He couldn’t linger on it for long though, not with the crushing pain encasing his chest. He needed to run, to get out of here. He had just climbed on Will’s bike in his memories when he finally came to his senses.

“Mike? Are you alright?”

He recognized Lucas’ voice. His friends were staring at him worryingly and he wondered how much time he had spent lost in Will’s memories. But that didn’t matter. What mattered was his friend.

“I’m okay. How... How is Will?”

His friends looked at him sternly, then they all stared at the same direction. That’s when he noticed that Will was now sitting next to him. His eyes were wide open, like a deer caught in headlights, ready to flee. However, Mike was still holding his hand tight, keeping him from escaping.

“You... You saw everything, right?”

Mike didn’t need to ask what Will was talking about. A quick nod was enough confirmation for Will. Mike didn’t want to expose him in front of everyone, not when he was already hurting so much. Suddenly, he felt so stupid for not seeing the truth sooner. He should have understood why Will was always stuck with him, why he reacted so badly to his relationship with El. How could he have been so blind?

And now, now he wanted nothing more than to take Will in his arms, to fix everything, to promise him he would never neglect him this way again. However, things weren’t that easy.  
“El?” He asked in a hesitant voice.

Will barely held back a sob and his fingers tightened around Mike’s. At least, now Mike understood where his distress was coming from.

El was out of breath, her hair sticking to her forehead and blood trickling down her noise. Her eyes were also teary with emotions and Mike instantly knew that she saw some of Will’s memories too while passing them onto him.

“I dumped your ass.” She reminded him with a sad smirk. “And he needs you more than me.”

Everyone around them was confused, but after this weird mind-sharing thing, El and Mike understood each other without words. Mike’s love for Will was undeniable. When his friend got upset with him, he ran after him under the rain, in the dark, to make sure he was alright. He couldn’t say he did the same for El after she broke up with him. She needed someone who would go that far for her, and this someone wasn’t Mike.

She took a step back so she would give the two boys some privacy. Mike sighed in relief, now that he was sure that what he was about to do wouldn’t break their friendship.

“Will...”

“Stop... I know that you must hate me now... I’ll... I’ll leave the party, you’ll never have to see me again...” Will sobbed, sheltering his face with his free arm.

His reaction hurt Mike. Did Will really think he could hurt him for this? But then memories that weren’t his own, memories of Lonnie calling his son slurs flooded his mind. Of course Will would be afraid of people’s reactions when it came to this.

He gently shed Will’s arm aside and his friend was too weak to stop him. Mike looked straight into his eyes,, hoping it could convey all the feelings he couldn’t express through words.

“I don’t hate you, Will.”

Then, without further warning, he joined their lips together. Mike could feel Will hiccup in surprise into the kiss. But then he wrapped his arms around Mike’s neck, desperately keeping him close, as if he believed the moment they parted, Mike would announce that this was only a cruel joke. When he finally had to let go to breathe, he hid in face in Mike’s shirt, still crying uncontrollably.

“It’s okay, Will, I love you. I’m here.”

Will raised his eyes up questioningly, as though he didn’t believe him. Shyly, he leaned towards Mike, until they were kissing again. Will didn’t have to say that he loved him too, not with the mental link they now shared. Mike knew, it was as simple as that.

In the background, they could hear their friends surprised reactions. Mike would deal with that and explain everything that happened later. For now, he wanted to focus on Will.

“Let’s get you home so you can warm up and tell us what you know about the Mind Flayer returning, okay?”

Will nodded and Mike helped him up to his feet, then wrapped an arm around his shoulder. He had seen in Will’s memories, how that always made him feel protected, safe. He smiled when his friend finally wiped off his tears, giving him a small smile.

No matter what kind monsters they would have to fight this time, he would be there to stand between them and Will.


End file.
